Morakinyo Akinosun
Abuja – Nigeria’s house of representatives on Thursday rejected a bill seeking to expand Sharia (Islamic law) in the 1999 constitution.
Sharia law has been in force for many years in northern Nigeria, where the majority of the population is Muslim. Its scope was limited to personal status and civil law. Since 2000, twelve states in northern Nigeria have added criminal law to the jurisdiction of Sharia courts.
The constitutional amendment bill, sponsored by Aliyu Missau, intended to amend sections 24, 262, 277, and 288 of the 1999 constitution by removing the word “personal” wherever “Islamic law” is mentioned.
Section 262 (1) of the constitution states that: “The Sharia Court of Appeal shall, in addition to such other jurisdiction as may be conferred upon it by an Act of the National Assembly, exercise such appellate and supervisory jurisdiction in civil proceedings involving questions of Islamic personal law”.
However, the bill aimed to remove the word “personal” from the section, allowing “Islamic law” to stand on its own.
Leading the debate, Missau said the inclusion of the word “personal” after “Islamic” restricts its application, especially on Islamic commercial laws.
“The 1999 constitution provided for personal Islamic law. The constitution did not envisage the dynamism and development that may come into the country,” the lawmaker said. “For instance, in 2003, the constitution did not foresee the advent of Jaiz Bank which operates under commercial Islamic law.”
Missau said the word “personal” should be removed to benefit Islamic commercial law and Islamic international law, among others.
Local news outlets reported that during the debate, legislators were split along regional lines, with northerners supporting the bill while their southern counterparts kicked against it.
Opposing the bill, Solomon Bob from the south-south Rivers state – said the amendment would broaden the application of Islamic law beyond the “personal matters” envisaged by the framers of the constitution.
“The implication is that if the word ‘personal’ is removed, Islamic law would have broader implications. The word ‘personal’ was put there for a reason,” Bob said.
AbdulHakeem Ado from the northwestern Kano state – supported the bill, saying Islamic commercial law needs to be sustained.
Saidu Abdullahi from the northcentral Niger state and Ahmed Satomi from a terror-ravaged northeasrern Borno state – were among lawmakers who spoke in favour of the bill.
Jonathan Gaza from Nasarawa – another north-central state, Ademorin Kuye from southwestern Lagos state, and Awaji-Inombek Abiante from the south-south Rivers state kicked against the proposed legislation.
Bamidele Salam from Osun, another southwestern state, strongly opposed the bill, saying issues of religion should be restricted to personal preference because Nigeria is a secular state.
“As students of history, we all know the background of this particular section during the various constitutional assemblies of 1979, 1989, and 1999. The drafters of the constitution were highly sensitive to religion,” Salam said.
“At the 1979 constitutional assembly, this particular section was very contentious until the military intervened to halt further debate, stating that the application of Islamic law would be restricted to personal matters like estates.
“We must be careful with any changes to the constitution that could further widen divisions in Nigeria. In any case, the matters my colleague seeks to address are already covered by existing laws.”
The bill was, however, rejected when it was put to a voice vote by Ben Kalu, the deputy speaker, who presided over plenary.